1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a container for packaging. Particularly, the present invention is directed to a method of forming a container for packaging products or other items susceptible to exuding liquids, wherein the container has an internal reservoir for the collection of liquids exuded therefrom.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional containers for packaging and display of meat, produce and other products for consumers are made of plastic foam or paperboard, and generally are simple concave trays having a separate transparent film cover or overwrap.
Consumers prefer to purchase items such as meat, poultry, seafood and products that release liquid, in dry packages. However, the amount of liquid residing in a food container typically increases over time, as the product ages and exudes liquid. Accordingly, retailers frequently rewrap the package, reduce the sale price of the product, or remove the product from the shelf because of consumer perception that the product might be spoiled. Moreover, such liquid can leak from a package if the package is not well sealed.
A common practice to reduce the problems caused by exuded liquids inside such containers includes the use of an absorbent pad, which is placed in or glued to the bottom of the container, typically between the container and the contents of the package. Typically, this practice requires a separate supply line in the manufacturing process for delivering the absorbent pad to the container, an additional step in the manufacturing process for application of the adhesive, and a dwell period to allow the adhesive to firmly bond the absorbent pad to the container. Further, the particular composition of absorbent pad and adhesive must comply with Federal Drug Administration guidelines and regulations regarding materials in direct contact with edible products.
Such conventional methods of forming containers having absorbent pads generally have been considered satisfactory for their intended purpose. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,834,606 and 6,695,138, which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety, disclose various absorbent pad configurations and methods of manufacture. However, these configurations are subject to a variety of disadvantages including a complex, cost prohibitive process in which the resulting products may have limited absorbency. In particular, these pads can tear or stick to the container contents and freeze to the contents when frozen, all of which pose inconvenience to the consumer, and added cost. Further, absorbent pads may dry the product with which they are in contact by wicking more liquid from the product than would otherwise occur naturally. Also, liquid held by an absorbent pad can be squeezed out if the pad is pressed, which may occur as a result of handling or due to the force exerted by the film overwrap. Such pads also tend to leak fluid when products are merchandised on their side. Moreover, the manufacturing process is labor intensive and requires a separate processing line to make and insert the pads into the containers, fabricating an assortment of pad sizes for use in varying tray sizes, and additional quality inspection is required to ensure proper placement of the pads.
A self-absorbing tray using an open cell foam structure is another conventional solution to absorb excess fluids. The material becomes absorbent when holes are pierced through the surface of the tray. While effective in reducing labor required to insert pads, an open cell tray structure is weaker overall, thereby increasing the chance for folded, cracked or broken trays during wrapping and transport of the product. Depending on the tray design, open cell trays can wick moisture through the tray and transfer liquid to the consumer's hands. Some open cell foam trays change color when saturated with fluid and are therefore unsightly to consumers. Furthermore, open cell trays offer a limited amount of absorbency. Trays loaded with large amounts of meat can easily overwhelm the absorbent capacity of the tray, resulting in unabsorbed liquid pooling at the bottom of the package.
Conventional double-walled trays, which contain an absorbent pad between an outer and inner tray are expensive and also have a limited absorbency. Moisture is introduced to the absorbent core through holes in the inner tray. Like that of the open cell tray, the liquid within the pad may have a propensity to be wicked up to and leaked from top edges of these types of trays. Further, the process used to manufacture these trays results in a rough edge that tends to pierce film wraps, which also results in leakage of liquid from the container.
Packaging containing an absorbent pad, either glued inside or sandwiched between inner and outer trays, creates a packaging container comprised of many different materials. The added labor and expense required to remove the absorbent materials from the package prohibit recycling of such packaging.
As evident from the related art, conventional methods often require excessive manufacturing cost and complexity while providing a container which suffers from inadequate absorbency of exuded liquids.
There thus remains a need for an efficient and economic method of manufacturing a container capable of containment of exuded liquids from and pooling of exuded liquids within container for packaging liquid-exuding products, such as meats, produce and other products.